Deliver Me
by Asterous Disaster
Summary: When in a dangerous situation Artemis finds that she would do anything to save him, even at the cost of her own morality.


**AN:** I do not own Young Justice or any of the DC affiliated characters.

This Fanfic was inspired by Florence and the Machine's song "Howl", its pretty epic but you don't need to listen to it to understand what's going on. Thank you to Eight of Swords for helping me so much with this, without you this would have never made it up here.

Just so you know: **flashbacks** are in _italics. _Enjoy!

**_Deliver Me _**

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><p>Artemis' eyes adjusted to the dim lighting encompassing her cell. The thug that threw her in here was outside the locked door, murmuring in his raspy smoker's voice. She looked around her to see if there was anything she could use to escape while trying to decipher what the thug was saying. Artemis wasn't surprised when she vaguely heard something that sounded like 'interrogation'. Her hands were bound behind her back in rough manacles; they were a little loose and felt rusty, ancient. Movement was limited by one of her legs being attached to a peg on the floor. It made shuffling along the ground an uncomfortably twisted experience as she took stock of the cell. <em>No arrows, no weapons, well no weapons that I can reach that is<em>. There was a pipe in the corner but it was too far from her circle of maneuverability. The door opened and the thug peaked in with a lecherous grin.

"Hello Beautiful." He approached her, causing her to awkwardly scramble backwards until she hit the wall behind her.

"Now, now that's no way to greet the man that'll be takin' care of you, is it pet?" he said, idly picking the pipe off the floor and pressing it under her chin to nudge her face up. Their eyes clashed as he squatted in front of her. Artemis spat in his face as a reply, barring her teeth like a wild animal backed into a corner. The pipe dropped as he grabbed the base of her pony tail, dragging her up by the hair until he was standing upright and she was dangling helplessly. Her bound leg protested against the painful stretching the thug had caused.

"That wasn't very nice, brat." He snarled, shaking her. Artemis gritted her teeth trying not to whimper in pain. Her father put her through worse; there was no way this lowly thug was going to get a reaction out of her.

"I was goin' to let you do this the easy way, my pet. But somethin' tells me you're not gonna cooperate, are you?" Suddenly he dropped her and backed away slightly. She expected the kick, curling into herself as if that would protect her and soften the blow.

"That was a warning pet. So if you don't answer my questions they'll be more to come. Wouldn't want to damage such a pretty face, hmm?" He sneered, once again squatting and breathing into her face. "So I suggest you answer, now where is the—"

* * *

><p>"<em>Arty!" He smiled, laughter bubbling up as her fingers quested along his sides—searching for the weak spots only she knew about.<em>

"_I'll stop if you answer my question." She teased, leaning closer so that they were nose to nose. _

_Sparkling blue met laughing green._

"_Alright, alright!" He gasped between barely controlled giggles. "I'll admit it, ok? Yes, I've always thought you were beautiful, even then…" _

* * *

><p>Her ribs hurt; the thug's kicks were definitely going to leave some nasty bruises. She could hear him breathing over her, frustrated by her lack of response. Hands grabbed her hair again. He pulled, raising her torso so that they were eye to eye. Blood was trickling down her cheek from a gash his boot probably caused. Distantly she heard an agonized scream. <em>There are others here?<em> The thug turned his head at the sound. His cracked lips stretched in a perverted grin, displaying his disgusting yellowed teeth. At his look Artemis' eyes widened in horror and comprehension. One of her friends got captured as well. _NoNoNonono…Not himWallyplease…not Wally. _

"Oh hehehe, you thought you were the only one we got?" The rasp was punctuated by another distant scream. "No, no pretty. That redhead's getting the same, maybe worse." Artemis clenched her eyes tightly—willing the horrors away. That man's grin stretched wider at her obvious distress. A strangled cry rang out loudly in the silence. She jerked in response causing her captor to tighten his painful grip.

Putrid breath fanned across her face, "Aren't his screams just…mmm delicious?" The thug's tongue lapped at the trial of blood on her cheek. Rage erupted deep within her. Instinctively Artemis sunk her teeth into the sensitive flesh of the man's face. His blood flooded her mouth and he let her go while yelping in pain.

"Little Bitch!" One of his hands was pressed against his face to stop the flow of blood. The other had picked up the steel pipe off the floor. She didn't have time to prepare for the blow that connected with her head. Black flooded her vision. _That was definitely not the smartest thing to do Arty_.

* * *

><p>"<em>Nnngg! Ar..Artemis." Wally moaned. His back arched deliciously as her tongue trailed a path down his chest. Hands wandered to the waistband of his pants, fingertips slipping in and teasing flesh. <em>

"_W..what are you doing?" he gasped, pulling away slightly as his whole body flushed and tensed simultaneously. _

"_I want to thank you properly, Walman." She whispered softly against his stomach. "Please?" His hazy green eyes searched hers. She felt his body relax under her touch again. Briefly she wondered what he found in her gaze before nipping his skin slightly and continuing her descent. _

_Trembling hands curled in her hair, "Aaah…" _

_She smiled at the sound. Tonight she was going to make him scream…_

* * *

><p>Artemis regained consciousness to an empty holding cell. The thug must have taken the bloody pipe with him when she passed out. The place was deadly silent. The screams that once filled the air were hauntingly absent. She didn't know whether to be relieved that Wally was no longer being tortured or terrified that he might be dead. <em>Don't think about that right now. You need to get out of here. <em>She struggled to push down the panic that had been steadily building since she first heard his screams. Panic wasn't going to solve anything.

First she needed to slip her wrists out of the manacles. Jiggling her arms a bit, she felt that they were loose enough for her to try to slip them out. She came to the conclusion that, just in case she needed to fight someone during her escape, breaking her thumbs to slide her hands free would be stupid. So Artemis began to rub her wrists against the metal, hoping that once her hands were slick with blood they would slide out smoothly. Gritting her teeth against the pain, twenty minutes later she was free of the manacles. She looked at her raw and bloodied hands and hoped that this wasn't going to permanently damage her aim somehow. She fished in her hair for the pin she kept hidden under her rubber band and with trembling fingers began to pick the lock of the cuff around her ankle.

* * *

><p>"<em>The door's stuck? Stuck? As in we can't get out?" He turned on her, finger jabbing into the air in front of her face. "This is your fault! Yours! I know it somehow, someway this was your doing Arty!" <em>

"_I know you hate me Kid Fail but that does not mean I a…"_

"_W..what? I don't hate you." Wally interrupted. _

_She blinked. What? "You…you don't?" _

"_Well...,"he scratched the back of his head. Looking at the wall, so that she could only see the side of his face he mumbled. "I mean I do find you irritating, annoying, but…hate you? I uh…" _

"_Uh I kinda _like_ fighting with you and all, you know?"His eyes slid to the side, catching her stare—color flooded his cheeks. _

_All of a sudden she felt inexplicably warm. She coughed, breaking eye contact. "Well..uh..the The door." _

"_Oh yeah, we have to get through the door." He sighed, "If only I could vibrate through things." _

"_Hey it's ok. We'll get out." Blue avoided green. _

_He smiled anyways. "Yeah." _

* * *

><p>Artemis didn't know how for long she waited in the shadows by the door to her cell. It felt like hours when a familiar raspy voice crudely called. "Ready for round two, pretty little bitch?"<p>

The door creaked open. "Pretty pet, why won't you answer?" he drawled. She waited until he had walked a few steps into the cell before sliding her body along the wall until she was behind him and closing the door to the cell. Darkness engulfed them. The heavy sounds of his breathing filled the tiny enclosure.

"Where…uggh." His unfinished inquiry was met with an unexpected kick in the side.

"Behind you." She whispered, grabbing the pipe he dropped and repaying him for that blow to the head. He stumbled forward, lurching around in search of something to grab onto in order to regain his balance. Not waiting for him to get his bearings, she followed the blow with a kick to the groin. The ugly thug doubled over, gasping.

"Ugghnn!"

"Which cell is he in?" The pipe connected with his flesh again. "Tell me!" Again, bones crunching under the unexpected force.

"An..and ruin my fffriends' fun?" The thug grunted. A scream pierced the air in renewed agony.

"TELL ME!" She screeched, vaguely aware of blood splattering onto her clothes as the thug tumbled to the floor at her feet.

"Ehehehe feisty b..bitch," he gasped, spitting up blood. "Redhead wasn't so feisty. A sssscre..mer ye…yes but not feisty."

Red flooded her vision. Dropping the pipe and getting onto her knees, she grasped the man's shirt lapels. Artemis roughly shoved him against the wall. Internally smiling at the sound his head made when it connected with the stone. One hand searched the thug's pockets, wrestling a switchblade from his grasp. _He really is incompetent if he hadn't pulled this out earlier._ She titled his head up and slid the blade under his chin, reveling in the role reversal.

"Now tell me what you did to him and where he is. Otherwise…well I think we've both realized that I don't exactly place _nice_." She hissed, pressing the blade closer.

The infuriating thug chuckled as he gasped for breath. He gave her a bloody grin, " when …_uggh…_ you pah..passed out, pppretty pet, the screamsss were sssoo delishus …_eckkh…_ I just had to get a taste. Did ya _…ah…_ know? He tastes soo gooood." She let out a primal scream, her tenuous control of her rage snapped, hands slicing vital arteries in a way that suggested it was more an action of _muscle memory_ than conscious thought. The thug slumped down the wall.

She was kneeling in a shallow puddle of blood, a muddied mixture of his and hers, when the realization of what she just did hit her. Scrambling to her feet, she felt for the first time the sheer amount of foreign blood caressing her skin. Her hair was heavy with it and a drop trickled down into her eyes. Shaking hands reached up to wipe the blood off. She paused looking at them. _A killer's hands._ _Tell me father, are you proud?_

* * *

><p>"<em>I know what you are."<em>

"_That's a relief Roy. For a while I was worried you thought I was a cucumber or something. We all know how much you hate green." She sneered, walking away from the angry _sidekick_. _

_Rough hands grasped her wrist. "Your father…" _

"_Is none of your business." She tugged. "Look if you're worried about Wally, don't be. I don't know what else you want from me but I thought it was obvious by now. I won't hurt him. I _can't _hurt him."_

"_Have you told him?" Red Arrow asked stiffly, eyes burrowing into her back as she walked away. _

_Artemis paused and slowly shook her head, her long hair swaying softly with the motion._

"_Then you already have."_

* * *

><p><em>Wally where are you?<em>

The guard in the hall gave a strangled gasp as she knocked him out from behind with her pilfered pipe. Two other broken and slumped over bodies littered the floor along the edges of the path her bloody footprints had left. _At least they aren't dead. At least you only broke your vow once. Only lost control once. _

The hall of the containment unit was nearing its end. She was glad the first guard she knocked out had a keycard to the holding cells. Yet, all she found so far were grimy empty cells and a few idiotic thugs on patrol. No Wally, dead or alive. There were three more cells between where she was standing and the door to the outside. Three more chances to find him. She heard a pained moan coming from the cell on her left and rushed in as fast as the adrenaline pumping through her tired body would allow.

Artemis choked back an anguished cry at the sight that greeted her when she pushed open the door. They had tortured him badly, repeatedly. Looking at the amount of blood that coated the floor, she didn't think he would still be breathing if it were not for his accelerated healing. Before the door had even shut she was kneeling next to him. Carefully and oh so tenderly, she reached out to brush some sweaty, bloody strands of hair away from his face. Wally flinched at the contact.

"Shhh, Wally. It's alright, it's me, Wally." She croaked, trying to be soothing for him.

He opened the eye that wasn't swollen a little and directed his slightly unfocused gaze in her direction. "Ar..Arty?" Happiness and confusion passed over his features. "They said th..ey _kk…killed_ you. I thought. I..i.. _eh.._ you were _dead_."

"No, no look I'm okay. See? They lied."

He gave her a wavering smile, "Sh..shoulda known…you…_ehhh…_ wouldn't hhhave gone down so easily. I'm glad."

Suddenly he groaned and lurched to the side as his body contracted in pain.

"Oh geez Walman. What did they do to you?" She moved behind him and gently started to pick at the manacles around his wrists, careful not to jostle his body too much.

"They.._uuughnn_.. ffound out about my healing abilities. Figured I'd ..._ugh.._ th..that I'd be good sssport_._" He hissed and clenched his good eye tightly shut. She saw a lone tear escape the confines of his lashes, trialing a salty path onto the floor. "It _hurts_."

"I know it hurts, Wally. But I got to get you out of here. Think you can try to sit up?" She asked. When he nodded in reply she tucked her hands around his torso to gently lift him. _I'm sorry. I'm so so sorry. _He fell forward a little into the cradle of her arms. "See? I got you. I'm here. This time I've got you."

His weak laugh was like music, "You've always had me."

* * *

><p><em>Dry, gentle hands wrapped the bandages around her scraped up fingers. He took special care not to make them too tight, brushing his fingertips along the inside of her wrist in a reassuring caress. She looked at the light playing through the red and gold strands of his hair. Her already bandaged hand coasted through his locks, trailing under his chin and breaking his concentration as she lifted his face up. She leaned down from her perch on the examination table, brushing her soft lips against his chapped ones in a whisper of a kiss. <em>

"_What's that for?" He asked when she leaned back. He stood up in between her legs and proceeded to lightly trap her hands on the table. _

"_You're always taking care of me." She sighed softly, rubbing the tip of her nose along his cheek. "I never get to do anything like this for you." _

"_You take care of me in _other_ capacities." Wally teased. His lips latched onto the sensitive flesh of her neck. She hummed in response and slipped her fingers through his. Abruptly he stopped. The teasing expression on his face turned serious. He whispered softly, "I love you."_

_Not knowing what to do she grabbed his shirt and pulled him close, all the while burrowing her face into his neck. "I…I can't…I" She trembled. _

"_Shhhh" Large, warm hands left comforting paths down her back. "It's ok, …just say it when you're ready. Okay?" _

_Artemis nodded against his neck, fingers still tangled into his t-shirt. He wrapped his arms around her, laying his chin on her shoulder._

_Wally breathed out, "Okay." _

* * *

><p>Artemis pushed open the heavy door into the midnight darkness that surrounded the containment unit, peaking out to see if there were any guards nearby. She could hear noises in the distance and figured that the unit was a good distance from the other buildings on the compound. Turning back inside her eyes searched out Wally's bruised form leaning against the wall for support. His eyes were clenched shut in pain, a hand pressed against his ribs, the wheezy rasp of his breathing suggested some sort of internal damage. He could barely stand on his own, let alone shuffle along her side. She absolutely hated the fact that they had to keep moving—hated hurting him no matter how necessary.<p>

"Wally?" She whispered as she slipped his arm around her shoulders, forcing him to put his weight on her instead of the wall. "You ready?"

Sucking in a shaky breath, he nodded. "Y…Yeah. I'm good."

_He's lying. _

She led the way outside of the building, taking care not to bump him too much as she navigated through the night. They stumbled and tripped as they made a winding path away from the dangers of the compound. They were nowhere near far enough when she gradually felt him lean even more of his weight onto her.

Short, shallow breaths brushed against the side of her face. "I…_ugh_…don't think I can w…walk much farther A…Arty." He stuttered, slipping out of her grasp and tumbling onto the ground. She collapsed onto her knees, gathering him into her arms and laying his head on her lap.

His fingers found hers and gently curled around them. "I'm sorry." He whispered.

"Oh Wally, why are _you _sorry?" She mumbled, clenching his hand in hers. "It's me. I'm the one that should be sorry. I took so long. I didn't even _think. _Didn't think that they had someone else. Didn't even want to think they had you." She leaned over and brushed shaking lips across his forehead.

"Hey, that's not y...your fault. Blaming yourse…" He began, attempting to soothe her.

"No no, there's more." She interrupted. Backing away slightly, she tilted her face to the side—avoiding eye contact. Her voice cracked, "And then…I killed someone, Wally. I just…I was so _angry_ and he hurt you. They all hurt you." Her whole body was trembling. "I'm so sorry. _ So sorry."_

She gave him a bitter smile as she finally met his eyes, whispering, "This is his blood, Wally, his_._ I killed him. What kind of justice is that?"

Wally just looked at her, smiling softly.

"Artemis, it's not that bad." His unsteady fingers reached up and captured a lone tear that had escaped. He gently rubbed the wetness along her cheek. Showing her his newly blood stained fingers when he pulled away. "See Arty? Cleaner already. All you need is a little water."


End file.
